Online businesses allow users to browse a website for items that are of interest, provisionally select items that they would like to buy, and then pay for those items online. Typically, it is beneficial for the online business to make it as easy as possible for customers to purchase multiple products in one transaction. To facilitate the process of completing online transactions. To this end many websites use a place where selected items for purchase are stored, such as a virtual or online shopping cart.
As customers explore a website, the shopping cart allows customers to add items of interest with a single click. The items are added to the shopping cart, without having to direct the user away from the web page that they were browsing. This allows a shopper to continue adding items without disrupting their search. Typically, a website will include a link to the shopping cart on each page. This provides the customer with quick access to shopping cart. From the cart, the customer can determine the list of items that are currently stored in the cart, the price of each item, and a running total for all items. This may allow a customer to adjust purchases as they continue to shop on the website.
Currently, there are many available shopping cart applications, some even provided when a website vendor purchases a website template. An online business can choose a simple option that's easy to install and manage, or may have a customized cart that tailors every step of the experience for customers. It all depends on a website vendor's budget and needs.
While shopping carts offer quick experiences for conveniently holding items ready for purchase, customers proceeding to checkout currently have limited payment options. The customer must either: 1) enter account information for a payment method such as a credit card or bank account, or 2) enter account information for a payment method that interacts with a third party that has already collected the account information on that customer's behalf, (such as PAYPAL). Sharing payment information may open the possibility for fraud by exposing that information to potentially non-trustworthy parties. Using a third party to manage the sharing of that information reduces this possibility, but forces the customer to authenticate with the credentials from this system. This increases the frustration and concern for consumers, particularly in view of the reoccurring reports of identity theft and personal data breaches.
The entry of the authentication details on systems such as PAYPAL requires potentially sensitive information to be provided within a browser session. Two-factor authentication systems such as TOTP (the time based one password algorithm) can be used in addition to the login information to provide additional security. Even if the information is stolen from the browser session, the credentials cannot be used without the theft of an item in customer's possession. Though two-factor authentication is becoming popular, it still requires the user to submit their credentials and then use a secondary application that they may not have installed to generate a code, or to verify a text message. This is a process that burdens the customer and can potentially lead to a period where a checkout will not be completed due to complications of authentication. Accordingly, improved methods for completing website cart checkouts are desired.